The beloved Hollywood star Bruce Willis reemerged on Thursday in a touching Instagram video that was shared by his wife, Emma Heming Willis. In it, Willis was seen thanking first responders who are currently fighting the wildfires raging on in Los Angeles.

Willis, sadly, is battling dementia and has largely disappeared from the public spotlight.

Willis Thanks First Responders

“Spotting a first responder, Bruce never missed a chance to show his gratitude with a heartfelt handshake and a ‘thank you for your service,'” Heming Willis wrote in the caption of the video. “Yesterday was no different.”

Willis was seen in the video wearing a New York Yankees baseball cap. He paired that with a light jacket over his black shirt and jeans.

“This makes my heart so freaking full,” the former Die Hard star’s daughter Tallulah Willis wrote in the comments.

Related: Bruce Willis’ Family Tragically Dismissed His Dementia Symptoms At First For One Surprising Reason

Willis’ Dementia Battle

This was a huge deal to Willis’ fans, as it was his first public appearance since he announced his frontotemporal dementia (FTD) diagnosis in 2023. The Alzheimer’s Association states that FTD is caused by “a group of disorders that gradually damage the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes. These damages cause changes in thinking and behaviors. Symptoms can include unusual behaviors, emotional problems, trouble communicating, challenges with work, and difficulty with walking.” 

Sadly, there is no cure for FTD at this time. In the wake of Willis’ diagnosis, Heming Willis, 46, has been serving as his caregiver.

“While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis,” read a statement released by Willis’ family in 2023. “FTD is a cruel disease that many of us have never heard of and can strike anyone. Today there are no treatments for the disease, a reality that we hope can change in the years ahead.”

“As Bruce’s condition advances, we hope that any media attention can be focused on shining a light on this disease that needs far more awareness and research,” the statement continued.

Related: Bruce Willis’ Family Celebrates His 69th Birthday After His Dementia Diagnosis – ‘So Much Has Changed’

Willis And Heming Willis Celebrate 17 Years Together

Last month, Willis and his wife celebrated their seventeenth wedding anniversary.

“17 years of us,” Heming Willis wrote on Instagram on December 29. “Anniversaries used to bring excitement — now, if I’m honest, they stir up all the feelings, leaving a heaviness in my heart and a pit in my stomach.”

“I give myself 30 minutes to sit in the ‘why him, why us,’ to feel the anger and grief,” she added. “Then I shake it off and return to what is. And what is… is unconditional love. I feel blessed to know it, and it’s because of him. I’d do it all over again and again in a heartbeat.”

Willis and Heming Willis are parents to daughters: Mabel Ray Willis, 12, and Evelyn Penn Willis, 10. He’s also shares older daughters Rumer Glenn Willis, 36, Scout LaRue Willis, 33, and Tallulah Belle Willis, 30, with his ex-wife Demi Moore, 62, who he was married to from 1987 until 2000. Though they divorced, Willis and Moore are still close friends.

Watch Moore talk about Willis’ condition last month in the video below.

Please join us in saying a prayer for Willis, and for all those impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires.

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